Thursday, 22 August 2013

Thatsit's health issue

Thatsit was fine when she went out, the other night (Mon-Tue), but when she came home at 1:30am, she could hardly walk, her back was low, and her back legs looked as if they were perma-cramped or something :o

I had no idea what had happened, I couldn't spot any obvious injuries, and I didn't want to try and pick her up as that would have caused her pain.

At first, I was going to get ready to take her to the 24h vets immediately, but she dragged herself to the bean bag (pictured above), and relaxed. As she clearly wasn't in constant pain - it only seemed to hurt when she tried to move - I decided to sit with her in the living room, and see if we could wait until the morning. (The basic fee at the 24h vets, is my 2-3 week's budget, and it'd be even more with expensive tests or such..)

She had a good sleep, only changed her position a few times, which caused her pain and made her annoyed, but then she relaxed again. She was able to move her tail, so I thought it probably wasn't anything spinal, but I wondered if it was a hip problem as her hip has been a bit dodgy - like she might occasionally side-step a little, etc.. She was also able to stretch her back legs when relaxed, but whenever she tried to put any weight on them, she'd be in pain.

I didn't leave her alone at all, and first thing in the morning, I was in touch with the vet, who happened to be doing a house call nearby, that morning, so he offered to pick Thatsit up and take her to the clinic! (That could have saved some human lives as well, since I was so tired at that point, that my driving would not have been the safest..)

I had a badly needed nap, and a few hours later, the vet returned Thatsit. She'd received a shot of antibiotics, and some pain medication (which I keep giving her every day). As there wasn't anything actually broken, there was no need for X-rays, at least at this point. She had some cat bite marks on her tail (which is now a little bit shaved..), but those couldn't really cause the 'funny' walk..

We decided to keep her on meds for a few days, and see how it goes. After that, if necessary, there might be some blood tests, etc..

I was hoping she'd rest downstairs, but no.. She loves being in the attic with me, so she actually dragged herself up the Stira.. :o The scarier part was when she decided to climb DOWN the Stira! I was planning to put her in the other cat carrier, and carry her down, but by the time I made it to the Stira, she was already making her way down, so all I could do was to stand and watch, going "JESUSGODMARYOHCHRISTPLEASEGOD", etc.. Fortunately, the whole gang was listening, and she made it without any extra injuries! Phew..

She has amazed me by actually taking her meds with food :o (She has a history of being difficult with meds.. It usually needs to be given as an injection or applied on the neck, or it's not happening at all..) Also, there has been improvement, although her walk is still 'funny', and when she walks on the rugless part of the attic, she really sounds like something out of a Japanese horror film.. :o

I've been in touch with the vet, and he reckons we'll keep following her progress for the weekend, and then see if any tests are necessary.